


Your Place

by justhuman



Category: Firefly
Genre: Community: kink_bingo, Established Relationship, F/F, Femslash, Plot What Plot, Technological Kink, Technology, mechanical, mechanical/technological, pervertables
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-26
Updated: 2012-07-26
Packaged: 2017-11-10 18:15:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/469219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justhuman/pseuds/justhuman
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Since Kaylee didn't make it to the shuttle, Inara goes to the engine and learns more about Kaylee an Serenity</p>
            </blockquote>





	Your Place

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Phantom](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phantom/gifts).



The temperature in the engine room was running high due to the electrical problem that Kaylee was trying to fix. It was stuffy, and she was on her back working on a maze of wiring. She couldn't be happier, because Serenity needed her, and she was there. Absently, Kaylee patted the deck, grateful that she was a part of this girl's life.

"Kaylee? Kaylee, are you down here?" 

At the sound of Inara's voice, Kaylee blinked up into the maze of cable that was giving her electrical glitches. As she slid out from under it all, she brushed her sleeve along her cheek, trying to wipe off the sweat.

"Hey!" Kaylee called with a smile and then waved her hands whie she scrambled past parts and tool boxes. "Oh, please don't lean on anything. Your stuff is so nice and down here is just so dirty – well, for an engine room it's really very clean, because my –"

"Because you wouldn't have it any other way," Inara smiled at her and that sort of stopped Kaylee in her tracks with a wave of pleasure.

"That's…" Kaylee couldn't think of a word and started to bounce, and then held onto one of the pipes, just to stop. "I'm so surprised to see you down here. I wasn't kidding about it being too messy. A fine lady like you-"

"Kay-lee!" Inara held up her hands. She made her way down the metal stairs that led her down to the level where Kaylee was standing. "Don't talk like that. There's nothing finer about me or anyone else for that matter. "

Although she was smiling, Kaylee couldn't help herself and looked down at the deck. It wasn't just Inara that had that effect on her, but there was something about the way Inara said it that just made things better.

With a little sigh, Kaylee let Inara lift her chin with the tip of a soft finger with perfectly manicured nails. "You must like it down here."

Kaylee smiled wide. "Course I do! It's the heart of Serenity. In here, I've got the pulse of everything, know what she needs. Not that I don't like being with you too. I'm still coming up to your shuttle tonight. It's nice to have you down here, but it's kind of not a competition, because it's a _lot_ nicer and because well…" The words wouldn’t come, but she wasn't dropping her eyes either, because Inara was smiling about their shared secret.

All of a sudden, Inara planted her hands on her hips. "You were coming up to my place a half an hour ago, but didn't make it."

"No!" Kaylee felt her eyes go wide. She'd been known to lose time in Serenity before. She pulled out a timepiece. "No! I didn't – oh! Except I did!"

"There's an old saying that if the mountain will not come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain."

Kaylee leaned in and whispered, "Who's Muhammad?"

Inara whispered back. "Me, which makes you the mountain."

Startled back, Kaylee was wondering if she should be offended, but Inara's smile told her otherwise. "Why am I a mountain?"

"Because you're strong and you're at the heart of everything and you'd rather stay in this engine room than indulge in other _pleasures_. Now, as the seeker of knowledge, I cannot expect all the answers to conveniently come knocking on the hatch of my shuttle."

"What _knowledge_?" Kaylee laughed at the idea. "What could I teach you?"

Inara leaned back against a railing. "You could teach me about _Serenity_ and why the ship is so special to you."

" _Serenity_ 's a lady. I like girls," Kaylee said, taking Inara's hand.

"I've noticed." 

"You know, this mountain is ready to move and well, _you know_."

"Oh, I do know. But today, Kaylee Frye, what I really want is to know about you and the hidden delights of this place. I know it's your job, but what is it about this place that makes you forget that you have a date?" Inara's voice dropped to a whisper. "There must be fantastic secrets down here, and you need to share them. 

Inara looked all around, and Kaylee looked with her, taking in every nut and bolt that she lovingly tightened. But Inara couldn't want to know about all that. It wasn't like Kaylee had any secrets. Then she found herself looking away and trying to cover by smiling and scratching the back of her head. Could Inara have found out about – Kaylee started blushing just thinking about it. Then again, Inara had a way of looking at Kaylee and figuring things out.

"Okay, I don't how you know, but you're the only one I would ever want to share this with. Come on!" Kaylee said it quick before she could lose her nerve. She tugged on Inara's hand and they moved down the catwalk to a tool locker where Kaylee shimmied a rucksack out from behind a loose panel. Handing it back to Inara, she said, "I just want you to know that I always clean up."

For a second, Kaylee thought that Inara looked confused, but then Inara smiled and said, "All right."

Not letting go of Inara's hand she walked her down another couple of levels until they were deep in _Serenity_ 's mechanics, far away from the usual entrances to the engine room. Taking the sack, Kaylee opened the top and then closed it. What she was about to show Inara was usually just between _Serenity_ and Kaylee. 

Out of habit, Kaylee glanced at the readouts and gages and was pleased to see that nothing needed adjusting. It looked like _Serenity_ was ready for a little fun too, and it was only Kaylee who was nervous. But then all that Kaylee could see was the twinkle in Inara's eye and hear her say that she wanted to know about Kaylee and _Serenity_. Kaylee whispered, "Are you sure?"

Looking wide-eyed and curious, Inara said, "Oh you bet I am."

Shuffling her feet, Kaylee could feel the blush coming on again.

Inara wasn't to be deterred. Her manicured fingers open the flap and she reached inside. "So let's see, we have a towel – a nice, soft towel."

Kaylee smiled in pleasure. "I bought that on Amphitrite. It was real expensive for a towel, but it was so pink and purple!"

"It's perfect," Inara said, reaching back into the sack, pulling out a wide leather band with hooks and chains on either end.

Kaylee watched Inara peer at the inscription on the band. " _Keep Out_ \- in four languages?"

"It's from a space port that we stopped in last year," Kaylee said, unable to keep the excitement out of her voice. "It was blocking the public entrance of a place we were robbing. Cap'n said that if we took it down, we weren't violating any station rules 'cause it was meant to be unhooked."

"Yeah, I can see him saying something like that." Inara seemed to be frowning at the items in her hands.

"There were a lot more challenging locks, but I thought I could use this. It's like the seat of a playground swing."

Inara took the connecting hooks in either hand, so the leather draped down in a bow. "Huh, it is like a swing." With a twinkling in her eye, Inara draped the swing and the towel over Kaylee's shoulder, before digging around in the bag for what Kaylee knew to be the last item.

"Uhm," Inara frowned. "This looks like a bicycle seat."

"Yup, the really tiny ones they use for racing," Kaylee grinned.

Inara grinned back and then looked confused again. 

"Oh it's not one of the hard, hard polymer ones. It's still pretty stiff, but the leather is real soft and, well, you know leather."

"Uh…"

Biting her lip, Kaylee asked, "You know, don't you? I mean this is what you were asking about up top, right?"

"I don't know if this was what I was asking about, but I'm dying to know what it's all about."

There was a flutter in Kaylee's stomach. She wasn't sure if it was nervousness or anticipation, but suddenly she couldn't hold back anymore. "So we start with the bicycle seat."

Kaylee stepped over a set of equipment that to Inara must look like a set of random pipes. "This is the pumping station for the stabilizer fluid."

"Of course it is."

"So I just pull this pin, slide the seat on and just pin it back in place."

The seat was mounted practically vertically with the wider section up and the narrow pommel pointed down. "Unless we're about to lose gravity, that's pretty steep for someone to sit on," Inara said.

"Oh, you don't sit," Kaylee said, rocking on her heels in anticipation. Unslinging the barrier strap from her shoulder, Kaylee hooked one end to a hook in the pipe system and held the other one. "Step up."

"Step up?"

"Yeah, like this." Kaylee climbed up the two lowest levels of pipe, like it was a ladder and leaned on the upside down seat. Then she stepped off. "You may only need one step, because you're taller."

With a shrug, Inara stepped up. "Is this right."

"Lean forward a little." 

As Inara did, Kaylee could see that the pommel was just at the right height for Inara's private bits.

Inara looked down, frowning. Kaylee took Inara's hand and placed her finger on the pommel, which was vibrating with the rhythm of Serenity. 

"Oh." Inara looked at Kaylee wide eyes. "Oh!"

"You kinda looked surprised. I mean I thought with the book in your shuttle, you know the one with the purple spine and all the pictures of the people and the harnesses and the – well, I guess you'd call 'em tools."

"Toys. They're usually called toys. I'm not shocked by the concept. I'm very familiar with the concept. You got this idea from the book?"

"Oh, nah. Back on the farm there was this tractor that bucked like a bull. It taught me a lot about mechanical things."

To Kaylee's wonder, Inara actually blushed. "Well, this is not bucking like a bull."

"Lift your skirt," Kaylee said.

"Don't get me wrong Kaylee, I am happy to lift my skirt for you, but we're in the engine room. It's a public space. I mean, anyone could walk in, Mal, Jayne, Book. I mean, think about River, she wanders the whole ship and eventually Simon follows her."

Besides being excited about what they were doing, Kaylee was feeling pretty relaxed. She didn't know why, but she knew that _Serenity_ would be their lookout for this adventure. It didn't happen all the time, but Kaylee was feeling pretty confident. She leaned back against the pipes. "I hope this doesn't sound mean, but I kind of like you all flustered like this."

While Inara gaped at her – actually gaped at her. This felt like familiar territory for Kaylee. Oh, it was nothing like going up to Inara's shuttle, where Inara was graceful and Kaylee was always afraid that she might break something. This was like when _Serenity_ shrieked out an alarm and it was up to Kaylee to take action and to make everything right.

She slid a hand under Inara's skirt and ran her fingers along the long, lean calf. When Inara didn't stop her, Kaylee got bolder moving straight past her knee, to the soft, soft flesh of her thigh, letting Inara's skirt ride along her arm the whole way.

"You don't have any underthings on," Kaylee squeaked and just barely stopped herself from giggling.

"Are you – " Inara looked up and closed her eyes briefly as Kaylee's fingers parted her sex, with just a light, light tickle. "Are you sure that we're going to be alone?"

Standing up, Kaylee rubbed harder, aided by the slick feel of Inara's anticipation. "Not knowing is half the fun." With her free hand, Kaylee gently pushed Inara's bottom forward, while the opposite hand, made sure that Inara's sex was positioned just right on the pommel of the bicycle seat. "You okay?"

"It feels a little precarious, leaning forward like this."

"The blue pipes overhead are cool, but stay away from the red ones."

As Inara reached up and took hold of the pipes, Kaylee stretched the leather barrier over Inara's ass like a swing and hooked it tight to another pipe. Inara was held tight against the bicycle seat. Wiping her fingers on the towel, Kaylee took a few steps back where she could see all of Inara stretched out across the pipes, like she was a part of the ship. 

The skirt was long and flowing. The back, trailed to Inara's sandals, highlighting her long legs. The front was bundled on top of the bicycle seat, half concealing Inara's pussy against the leather of the pommel. With Inara's bare arms stretched overheard, it only enhanced the beauty of her form. Inara's halter was embroidered with gold threads and little gems, which only highlighted Inara's breasts. It was pretty and only held up a thin cord, tied in a bow behind her neck.

Inara was beautiful and Serenity was more beautiful for her. Kaylee got an unaccountable rush, remembering all the times she had stretched her own body between the pipes like that, making herself a part of the ship.

"Do you like what you see?" Inara asked, her voice husky.

Kaylee wanted to tell her about how much more beautiful _Serenity_ was, but instead laughed a little nervously. "You've got too many clothes on."

Inara smiled that kind smile of hers that said she understood. "You're overdressed too. By the way, while it's got a nice hum, this is still not bucking like a bull."

Kaylee smiled and turned a knob. A puff of condensation made a bit of cool fog shoot across the room.

Inara's whole body twitched and then she let her head fall back as she smiled. " _Run-tse duh fwotzoo!_ Kaylee, this is _highly_ inventive. I can't believe that you – shy little you. How did you?"

With a smile, Kaylee turned another knob and felt _Serenity_ vibrate beneath her feet, but her attention was caught by Inara's face. She watched the changes in it, like she had never watched anything before. "You're eyes are as big as saucers."

"This is much more like a bull."

It would be amazing to just stand there, turning the knobs and letting _Serenity_ have her way with Inara, but Kaylee wanted more contact. Climbing up into the pipes, she leaned forward and trailed her fingers over Inara's bare arm as she kissed her, kissed her hard. She could feel the thrum of _Serenity_ in Inara's lips and tongue. Kaylee had always liked the smell of oil and the taste of metal when she had kissed Serenity's engines, but this was so much better – a warm avatar moving beneath her fingers. 

Inara was breathing faster when Kaylee broke off and said, "When I got here, this cooling system used to near shake itself apart. That wasn't good for _Serenity_ not in the long run, so I set about fixing her."

"Not a time to talk about manuals."

With a slight tug, Kaylee unknotted the bow at the back of Inara's neck, releasing the halter. The fabric fell down, exposing her breasts. "Fixin' things, at least for me, is getting the feel of it. Her fingers moved again over the exposed flesh, thumbs brushing roughly over the swollen nipples. "I like to feel my way through."

With a hum of pleasure, Inara pushed her body into the pommel and Kaylee's hands. "Tell me more about _Serenity_ , but don't stop trying to feel things out. You have good hands, mei-mei." 

"She takes where we want to go, protects us from radiation, absorbs more than her fair share of energy blasts." Kaylee was using her hands and her mouth, touching, kissing nipping the curve of Inara's breast and the flesh of her belly. The rougher Kaylee was, the more Inara responded. She slapped a stinging blow over one breast and nipple. Taking the nipple between her thumb and forefinger, Kaylee pinched.

Inara tried to arch her shoulders away, but Kaylee held fast and watched as the flesh stretched, just like in some of the piercing pictures in Inara's book. It gave Kaylee ideas about bending metal into the right shapes. Before she could get caught up in that fantasy, she let go and ate the moan that came out of Inara's mouth with a kiss.

Kaylee held her as Inara turned her head away, groaning. " _Serenity_ 's the roof over our heads and the air we breathe. You can taste her in the water and even the food. I can taste her on you now. People take that for granted, but she needs us too. We need to be a part of her." Kaylee tweaked a knob, just to feel _Serenity_ more through Inara. 

Inara's voice was soft and breaking. "You make it sound like a sacrifice to one of the ancient goddesses of Earth-that-was."

"More like a gift." She turned another knob an Inara spat out a curse, half in English and half in Chinese. Her shoulder's arched back

This time Kaylee ran her nails down Inara's back hard, but not enough to break the skin. Inara bucked against the bicycle seat and Kaylee, so that Kaylee couldn't tell if she wanted more or if she wanted to get away. She figured it was the first option, because Inara didn't let loose from the pipes she was holding to fend off the assault on her body. 

Now Kaylee was breathing hard, soothing the soreness out of one nipple with her tongue while she abused the second with her fingers. She had crept closer, and tried to position her own clit against the back of the bicycle seat, but it was a bad angle and she was still in her clothes. " _Tzao-gao!_ I need to make this bicycle for two!"

Inara was alternately pushing against the pommel and trying to pull away, when Kaylee moved up a bit and straddled a pipe humming to the same vibration. It was precarious, because she was on her toes, but now she was feeling the sensations that Inara was. Trying to balance and trying to touch was getting hard, so Kaylee leaned forward and put her mouth on the top of Inara's breast, kissing and sucking harder and harder, as the orgasm built inside her.

"Don't you stop, don't you dare stop!" Inara groaned into her ear. She must have let go of one of the pipes, because she was pulling Kaylee's hair, pulling their bodies together. 

The rhythm of the pipes sped up and shifted, rocking them both hard. Since neither of them had a free hand, it must have been _Serenity_ claiming her tribute. Kaylee's overalls were warm and wet, gliding against the pipe as she clung to Inara who mewed in her ear.

Kaylee felt another wave build as she looked into Inara's eyes. They were blissed and dilated. 

"Please, honey, have to stop, have to stop now!" Inara cried.

Kicking a valve with her boot, the vibrations dissipated. "Hang on," Kaylee said and Inara did, right to Kaylee's shoulders. She was nearly lost in Inara's kiss as she unhooked the safety strap. Before Inara could move, Kaylee's hand was under the skirt and nestled into the wetness between her legs. 

Inara sighed. "Maybe, maybe just a little sensitive – Oh!"

Kaylee slid three fingers deep into her lover. "You've got one more, dontcha? Last one was for Serenity, this one's for me."

Their mouths came together as Inara fucked herself on Kaylee's hand, gasping into her mouth. It only took a couple of thrust before Inara came wet and warm around Kaylee fingers. 

It was a much longer time before they unwound their arms from one another and untangled themselves from _Serenity_.

**Author's Note:**

> Now that the reveal is out, I would like to give many, many thanks to my Beta heroines - Dancetomato and Jelazakazone. A big hug out to Sam_Gamgee who stepped up and gave me a read through.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Podfic] Your Place](https://archiveofourown.org/works/596126) by [readbyjela (jelazakazone)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jelazakazone/pseuds/readbyjela)




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